After a few months of finding ways to cook and bake with the pulp from juicing, it seems pretty ridiculous (and wasteful!) that I ever discarded my juicing leftovers. Using the pulp from my juicer not only ensures that I get all the nutrients from my produce, the juicer also does most of the chopping and mincing work for me. This renders pulp that is more or less ready to be thrown into a recipe, as is.

Get to know your pulp

Of course, it’s easier to use pulp from some fruits and vegetables (apples, cucumbers, leafy greens, peppers, carrots, parsley) than pulp from pithy citrus (oranges and grapefruits), or the seedy pulp from certain small berries.

But once you figure out what produce yields usable pulp, it’s very easy to find recipes that, with a minor adaptation here and there, will allow you to turn your juicing “waste” into delicious meals and desserts.

From juice to main dish

I had a pile of leafy green pulp from a batch of chard and dandelion juice that I sweetened slightly with a few Bartlett pears. I was lucky to find some very vibrant-looking red chard for this recipe, but you can use green chard (as pictured) or rainbow chard as well.

The chard and dandelion juice left me with more than four cups of shredded greens. I gently sautéed the pulp with sweet onions and spices and then blended the mixture into a creamy tofu filling for these stuffed peppers.

Adding nuts or seeds as a topping gives the finished product a nice textural contrast. Topping the peppers with breadcrumbs and shredded cheese is also a nice touch. I recommend serving these with a side of rice pilaf.

Tofu-Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients for Red Chard and Dandelion Juice

Ingredients for peppers

Instructions for juice

Wash the greens well to remove dirt and debris. Using your juicer, juice everything and collect the pulp in a bag (you may need to change bags halfway through — there will be a lot of pulp). Mix juice and enjoy.

Instructions for stuffed peppers

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